Spring is officially here, and as the season of renewal it brings new life. Plants are starting to sprout and our gardens are starting to bud. New life is all around us both in nature and at the Jade clinic! With prenatal yoga, physical therapy for moms-to-be, and mom & baby classes, we get to see new life in many stages of development here. What isn’t so easy to see is the care that we offer women before they become pregnant.

Acupuncture and herbs can help with fertility, and we offer both at Jade to help women as they prepare to carry a baby. In gardening, one nourishes the soil to generate a more fruitful garden. With acupuncture, we nourish the body to encourage a healthy pregnancy. When thinking about fertility, the body is similar to soil in that it is the environment in which your baby will grow. An important part of promoting fertility, therefore, is helping mom — the baby’s vessel — reach optimal health so that conception can happen.

The clinical approach to any acupuncture treatment is to address the whole body. Plato summarized this idea well when he said, “The part can never be well, unless the whole is well.” This concept is an important one to understand because an imbalance in any part of your body impacts its overall functioning. Seemingly unrelated past issues in your health history may be critical to finding the right diagnosis and treatment to assist with fertility.

Prior to your initial appointment, you will fill out a detailed health history that can point us to certain imbalances in your body. Conditions like chronic low back pain, frequent sinus congestion, or anxiety may not seem significant to your fertility, but to an acupuncturist this information is valuable. By understanding how all of your systems function, we can better tailor the acupuncture treatments to your body’s needs.

After discussing overall health, the appointment will focus on reproductive history. The first step to treating fertility is to regulate the cycle. In order to do that with the acupuncture, we need to understand what your cycle looks like. That includes information about the length and regularity of the period, as well as the length of the cycle. Any additional symptoms you may have around time of the period, like changes in mood, will also guide treatment. Regulating ovulation, so that it is predictable and consistent, is another goal of treatment. Finally, helping to address any complicating factors such as endometriosis, tube issues, or a history of prior miscarriages will be part of the acupuncture plan.

The detailed intake and discussion helps provide a clear diagnostic picture so we can create a strong fertility plan tailored to your specific needs. Plus, by addressing the whole body you should see benefits in several areas. So, if you are thinking about trying acupuncture for fertility, we hope this will put a Spring in your step to give it a try!